Category Manager - General Merchandise

This role is for one of the Weekday's clients

Min Experience: 2 years

Location: Bengaluru

JobType: full-time

The Category Manager – General Merchandise is responsible for building and managing high-value assortments across GM categories such as Home, Kitchen, and Stationery. This role requires hands-on experience working directly with manufacturers, particularly for unbranded goods, and strong expertise in zero-based costing. The ideal candidate is commercially astute, execution-focused, and skilled at developing strong supplier partnerships to deliver value-led assortments, especially for price-sensitive and small-town consumers.

Key Responsibilities

A. Buying, Sourcing & Supplier Management

• Own end-to-end buying for General Merchandise categories, including identifying, evaluating, and onboarding new manufacturers and suppliers.
• Develop strong vendor relationships and lead negotiations on pricing, margins, trade terms, and payment conditions.
• Continuously expand and optimize the supplier base to enhance cost efficiency, quality, and assortment breadth.
• Conduct regular vendor performance reviews covering supply reliability, quality, and commercial outcomes.

B. Assortment Building & Pricing

• Curate region-specific and seasonally relevant assortments aligned with customer needs and value perception.
• Benchmark pricing across offline and online channels to maintain competitive pricing structures.
• Identify assortment gaps, emerging trends, and new product opportunities using store feedback and competitive analysis.

C. Purchase Planning & Inventory Management

• Collaborate with supply chain teams to plan replenishment and maintain healthy stock levels.
• Forecast demand and plan purchases based on historical sales, trends, and store-level insights.
• Monitor ageing inventory, drive SKU rationalization, and execute exit strategies for slow-moving products.

D. Merchandising Support & Execution

• Work closely with store teams to ensure effective planograms, product placement, and in-store visibility standards.
• Support promotional planning through vendor-funded schemes and category-level offers.
• Coordinate with catalogue and content teams to ensure accuracy in product details, pricing, and visual standards.

E. Market Intelligence & Competitive Insights

• Conduct regular market and supplier visits to identify new sourcing opportunities and understand local consumer behavior.
• Track category trends across home & kitchen, plastics, utilities, cleaning tools, and stationery.
• Share market and competitive insights proactively to improve assortment relevance and commercial performance.

What We’re Looking For

• 2–7 years of experience in Buying, Sourcing, or Category Management within General Merchandise or modern retail.
• Strong supplier and manufacturer network across GM categories such as plastics, home & kitchen, utilities, cleaning tools, and stationery.
• Proven ability to negotiate pricing, margins, and commercial terms.
• Strong understanding of pricing strategies, purchase planning, and cost optimization, including zero-based costing.
• Analytical mindset with strong Excel skills and comfort working with sales and inventory data.
• Hands-on, execution-driven approach with the ability to collaborate closely with suppliers and store teams.
• High ownership, agility, and willingness to travel for supplier and market visits.

Skills

• Category Management
• Retail Category Management
• General Merchandise
• Vendor & Supplier Management
• Buying & Sourcing